It’s like some weird form of time travel. In no year before do I think we’ve had the collective experience of, “Where did the time go?” like we do right now. It feels like we just started the March 2020 lockdown yesterday, and now the calendar says 2022 starts in forty-something days. For many people, the last year and a half has fluctuated between feeling extremely stressful and extremely boring. I’m sure you can think of your own specific milestones for that time, but I’m also sure there’s a lot of it that just blurs together.
It’s difficult to prepare when completely new experiences are thrust upon you. We will all certainly be more prepared for the next global pandemic (training I pray we never need). However, one thing that we can recognize is how fast time flies. It flies when you’re busy and it flies when you’re bored. Knowing this we need to make intentional effort to slow down and recognize who we are called to be and from that how we treat the people around us.
Paul in his concluding remarks of 1 Thessalonians 5 reminds us,
“Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
As demanding as our recent history has been we need to remind ourselves that it has been that way for everyone. As much as we want people to have the grace to treat us this way, we must also do our very best to show this same grace to the people around us. However, we can only do this if we take the time to slow down and be present in the moment with someone else.
Soon the last year and a half will just be a blip on the radar of your personal history, an interruption to your time flying by. Going forward, how can you capture your time and use it well?